Summer Ski
Short summer ski are very useful. A handy size is about 5½ feet in length. Such ski are very light and easily carried, and can be tied on between the rucksack and the back. They are becoming very popular, and have a great future.
On hard snow short ski are nearly as fast and as steady as long ski. On soft snow they are, of course, nothing like so fast, and are apt to be jerky and unpleasant if the snow varies in density or in speed. On steep slopes of soft snow they are quite as good as long ski, for they are very easy to turn; and so long as the slope is steep enough to descend with continuous turns, short ski are as good or better than long ski. It is on gradual slopes of soft snow or crust that their disadvantage is marked.
They are amazingly handy for really steep narrow slopes, such as gullies. On short summer ski one can descend a gully 40 degrees steep and about 12 feet wide with sharp continuous turns. Stemming turns and Christianias are ridiculously easy.
Mountaineers who have never been on ski will find short ski quite easy to manage. A man who can glissade with safety down a steep gully will be able to ski almost at once on good snow and on easy slopes without too many falls, and should be able to make slow turns on short ski after a day or two’s practice. Provided the snow is good, the average névé is an ideal practice-ground for beginners owing to the absence of obstacles.
Even very short ski, 3 feet or 4 feet in length, are a great deal better than no ski. On steep slopes they are most useful, and even on gentle slopes, provided the snow is hard, one can get a really fine run on a pair of ski no more than a yard in length.